Stephaochratidin A, a Rare Stephacidin-Asperochratide Hybrid with Ferroptosis Inhibitory Activity from the Deep-Sea-Derived Aspergillus ochraceus.

One rare stephacidin-asperochratide hybrid, stephaochratidin A (1), was isolated from the deep-sea-derived Aspergillus ochraceus MCCC 3A00521. The relative structure of 1 was determined by comprehensive analyses of its 1D and 2D NMR data as well as HRESIMS data. And the absolute configuration was unambiguously assigned by ECD calculations and the X-ray single-crystal diffraction analysis. Plausible biosynthetic pathway of 1 was proposed. Stephaochratidin A (1) exhibited significant ferroptosis inhibitory activity with the EC50 value of 15.4 µM by downregulating HMOX-1 expression and lipid peroxidation.

Lead Optimization of Butyrolactone I as an Orally Bioavailable Antiallergic Agent Targeting FcγRIIB.

Food allergy (FA) poses a growing global food safety concern, yet no effective cure exists in clinics. Previously, we discovered a potent antifood allergy compound, butyrolactone I (BTL-I, 1), from the deep sea. Unfortunately, it has a very low exposure and poor pharmacokinetic (PK) profile in rats. Therefore, a series of structural optimizations toward the metabolic pathways of BTL-I were conducted to provide 18 derives (2-19). Among them, BTL-MK (19) showed superior antiallergic activity and favorable pharmacokinetics compared to BTL-I, being twice as potent with a clearance (CL) rate of only 0.5% that of BTL-I. By oral administration, Cmax and area under the concentration-time curve (AUC0-∞) were 565 and 204 times higher than those of BTL-I, respectively. These findings suggest that butyrolactone methyl ketone (BTL-BK) could serve as a drug candidate for the treatment of FAs and offer valuable insights into optimizing the druggability of lead compounds.

Genome Mining of a Deep-Sea-Derived Penicillium allii-sativi Revealed Polyketide-Terpenoid Hybrids with Antiosteoporosis Activity.

Two novel meroterpenoids, alliisativins A and B (1, 2) were discovered through a genome-based exploration of the biosynthetic gene clusters of the deep-sea-derived fungus Penicillium allii-sativi MCCC entry 3A00580. Extensive spectroscopic analysis, quantum calculations, chemical derivatization, and biogenetic considerations were utilized to establish their structures. Alliisativins A and B (1, 2) possess a unique carbon skeleton featuring a drimane sesquiterpene with a highly oxidized polyketide. Noteworthily, alliisativin A (1) showed dual activity in promoting osteogenesis and inhibiting osteoclast, indicating an antiosteoporosis potential.

Chemical Constituents from the deep-sea-derived Fungus Aureobasidium melanogenum LUO5.

Three new C10 and C12 aliphatic δ-lactones (1-3), three new fatty acid methyl esters (4-6), and eight known compounds (7-14) were isolated from the marine Aureobasidium sp. LUO5. Their structures were established by detailed analyses of the NMR, HRESIMS, optical rotation, and ECD data. All isolates were tested for their inhibitory effects on nitric oxide production in LPS-induced BV-2 cells. Notably, compound 4 displayed the strongest inhibitory effect with the IC50 value of 120.3 nM.

Marine-Derived Alternariol Monomethyl Ether Alleviates Ovalbumin-Induced Food Allergy by Suppressing MAPK and NF-κB Signaling Pathways of Mast Cells.

The prevalence of food allergies has grown dramatically over the past decade. Recently, studies have shown the potential of marine substances to alleviate food allergies. We utilized a rat basophilic leukemia (RBL)-2H3 model to evaluate the antiallergic effects of alternariol monomethyl ether (AME) extracted from marine fungi Alternaria sp. Our results showed that AME attenuated food allergy symptoms in mice and reduced histamine release in serum. The population of mast cells in the spleen and mesenteric lymph nodes was considerably reduced. Moreover, in vitro assays also revealed that AME inhibited the release of ß-hexosaminidase and histamine. Transcriptomic analysis uncovered that AME regulated gene expression associated with mast cells. Additionally, Western blotting demonstrated that AME suppressed mast cell activation by modulating MAPK and NF-κB signaling pathways. Taken together, these findings provide a theoretical basis for the potential antiallergic use of marine-derived compounds in the development of functional foods.

Anti-necroptosis and anti-ferroptosis compounds from the Deep-Sea-Derived fungus Aspergillus sp. MCCC 3A00392.

Eight undescribed (1-8) and 46 known compounds (9-54) were isolated from the deep-sea-derived Aspergillus sp. MCCC 3A00392. Compounds 1-3 were three novel oxoindolo diterpenoids, 4-6 were three bisabolane sesquiterpenoids, while 7 and 8 were two monocyclic cyclopropanes. Their structures were established by exhaustive analyses of the HRESIMS, NMR, and theoretical calculations of the NMR data and ECD spectra. Compounds 10, 33, 38, and 39 were able to inhibit tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-induced necroptosis in murine L929 cell lines. Functional experiments verified that compounds 10 and 39 inhibited necroptosis by downregulating the phosphorylation of RIPK3 and MLKL. Moreover, compound 39 also reduced the phosphorylation of RIPK1. Compounds 10, 33, and 34 displayed potent inhibitory activities against RSL-3 induced ferroptosis with the EC50 value of 3.0 µM, 0.4 µM, and 0.1 µM, respectively. Compound 10 inhibited ferroptosis by the downregulation of HMOX1, while compounds 33 and 34 inhibited ferroptosis through regulation of NRF2/SLC7A11/GCLM axis. However, these compounds only showed weak effect in either the necroptosis or ferroptosis relative mouse disease models. Further studies of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics might improve their in vivo bioactivities.

Hepialiamides A-C: Aminated Fusaric Acid Derivatives and Related Metabolites with Anti-Inflammatory Activity from the Deep-Sea-Derived Fungus Samsoniella hepiali W7.

A systematic investigation combined with a Global Natural Products Social (GNPS) molecular networking approach, was conducted on the metabolites of the deep-sea-derived fungus Samsoniella hepiali W7, leading to the isolation of three new fusaric acid derivatives, hepialiamides A-C (1-3) and one novel hybrid polyketide hepialide (4), together with 18 known miscellaneous compounds (5-22). The structures of the new compounds were elucidated through detailed spectroscopic analysis. as well as TD-DFT-based ECD calculation. All isolates were tested for anti-inflammatory activity in vitro. Under a concentration of 1 µM, compounds 8, 11, 13, 21, and 22 showed potent inhibitory activity against nitric oxide production in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-activated BV-2 microglia cells, with inhibition rates of 34.2%, 30.7%, 32.9%, 38.6%, and 58.2%, respectively. Of particularly note is compound 22, which exhibited the most remarkable inhibitory activity, with an IC50 value of 426.2 nM.

Penicopeptide A (PPA) from the deep-sea-derived fungus promotes osteoblast-mediated bone formation and alleviates ovariectomy-induced bone loss by activating the AKT/GSK-3ß/ß-catenin signaling pathway.

The potential of marine natural products as effective drugs for osteoporosis treatment is an understudied area. In this study, we investigated the ability of lead compounds from deep-sea-derived Penicillium solitum MCCC 3A00215 to promote bone formation in vitro and in vivo. We found that penicopeptide A (PPA) promoted osteoblast mineralization among bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs) in a concentration-dependent manner, and thus, we selected this natural peptide for further testing. Our further experiments showed that PPA significantly promoted the osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs while inhibiting their adipogenic differentiation and not affecting their chondrogenic differentiation. Mechanistic studies showed that PPA binds directly to the AKT and GSK-3ß and activates phosphorylation of AKT and GSK-3ß, resulting in the accumulation of ß-catenin. We also evaluated the therapeutic potential of PPA in a female mouse model of ovariectomy-induced systemic bone loss. In this model, PPA treatment prevented decreases in bone volume and trabecular thickness. In conclusion, our in vitro and in vivo results demonstrated that PPA could promote osteoblast-related bone formation via the AKT, GSK-3ß, and ß-catenin signaling pathways, indicating the clinical potential of PPA as a candidate compound for osteoporosis prevention.

Citriquinolinones A and B: Rare Isoquinolinone-Embedded Citrinin Analogues and Related Metabolites from the Deep-Sea-Derived Aspergillus versicolor 170217.

A systematic chemical investigation of the deep-sea-derived fungus Aspergillus versicolor 170217 resulted in the isolation of six new (1-6) and 45 known (7-51) compounds. The structures of the new compounds were established on the basis of exhaustive analysis of their spectroscopic data and theoretical-statistical approaches including GIAO-NMR, TDDFT-ECD/ORD calculations, DP4+ probability analysis, and biogenetic consideration. Citriquinolinones A (1) and B (2) feature a unique isoquinolinone-embedded citrinin scaffold, representing the first exemplars of a citrinin-isoquinolinone hybrid. Dicitrinones K-L (3-4) are two new dimeric citrinin analogues with a rare CH-CH3 bridge. Biologically, frangula-emodin (32) and diorcinol (17) displayed remarkable anti-food allergic activity with IC50 values of 7.9 ± 3.0 µM and 13.4 ± 1.2 µM, respectively, while diorcinol (17) and penicitrinol A (20) exhibited weak inhibitory activity against Vibrio parahemolyticus, with MIC values ranging from 128 to 256 µM.

Penidihydrocitrinins A-C: New Polyketides from the Deep-Sea-Derived Penicillium citrinum W17 and Their Anti-Inflammatory and Anti-Osteoporotic Bioactivities.

Three new polyketides (penidihydrocitrinins A-C, 1-3) and fourteen known compounds (4-17) were isolated from the deep-sea-derived Penicillium citrinum W17. Their structures were elucidated by comprehensive analyses of 1D and 2D NMR, HRESIMS, and ECD calculations. Compounds 1-17 were evaluated for their anti-inflammatory and anti-osteoporotic bioactivities. All isolates exhibited significant inhibitory effects on LPS-stimulated nitric oxide production in murine brain microglial BV-2 cells in a dose-response manner. Notably, compound 14 displayed the strongest effect with the IC50 value of 4.7 µM. Additionally, compounds 6, 7, and 8 significantly enhanced osteoblast mineralization, which was comparable to that of the positive control, purmorphamine. Furthermore, these three compounds also suppressed osteoclastogenesis in a dose-dependent manner under the concentrations of 2.5 µM, 5.0 µM, and 10 µM.

Chemical Constituents of the Deep-sea Gammarid Shrimp-Derived Fungus Penicillium citrinum XIA-16.

One new alkaloid, (S)-2-acetamido-4-(2-(methylamino)phenyl)-4-oxobutanoic acid (1), was isolated from the deep-sea-derived Penicillium citrinum XIA-16, together with 25 known compounds including ten polyketones (2-11), eight alkaloids (12-19), six steroids (20-25), and a fatty acid (26). Their planar and relative structures were determined by an analysis of 1D and 2D nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) as well as high resolution electrospray ionization mass spectroscopy (HR-ESI-MS) data. The absolute configuration of 1 was determined by comparison of the experimental and calculated electronic circular dichroism (ECD) spectra. Penicitrinol B (6) significantly inhibited RSL3-induced ferroptosis (EC50 =2.0 µM) by reducing lipid peroxidation and heme oxygenase 1 (HMOX1) expression. Under the concentration of 10 µM, penicitrinol A (7) was able to inhibit cuproptosis with the cell viabilities of 68.2 % compared to the negative control (copper and elesclomol) with the cell viabilities of 14.8 %.

Neotricitrinols A-C, unprecedented citrinin trimers with anti-osteoporosis activity from the deep-sea-derived Penicillium citrinum W23.

Marine fungi are prolific source for the discovery of structurally diverse and bioactive molecules. In our search for new anti-osteoporosis compounds from deep-sea-derived fungi, we prioritized a fungus whose extract exhibited moderate activity and rich chemical diversity. The investigation of this strain afforded a class of citrinins, including three new citrinin trimers, neotricitrinols A-C (1-3), and three known dimeric/monomeric precursors (4-6). Neotricitrinols A-C (1-3) feature a unique octacyclic carbon scaffold among the few reported citrinin trimers with their absolute configurations established by spectroscopic analysis, theoretical-statistical approaches (GIAO-NMR, TDDFT-ECD/ORD calculations), DP4+ probability analysis as well as biogenetic consideration. A plausible biosynthetic pathway linking 1-3 from the common intermediate metabolite penicitrinol A (4) was proposed. Biologically, neotricitrinol B (2) showed potential anti-osteoporosis activity by promoting osteoblastogenesis and inhibiting adipogenic differentiation on primary bone mesenchymal stem cells, while displaying no cytotoxicity.

Cladosporium sphaerospermum extract inhibits quorum sensing associated virulence factors of Serratia marcescens.

Serratia marcescens is now becoming a propensity for its highly antimicrobial-resistant clinical infections. Currently, it provides a novel strategy to prevent and control microbial infection by regulating S. marcescens quorum sensing (QS). Deep-sea-derived fungi are rich in QS bioactive constituents. In this work, the extracts from Cladosporium sphaerospermum SCSGAF0054 showed potent QS-related virulence factors and biofilm-inhibiting activities against S. marcescens NJ01. The swimming motility and multiple virulence factors such as prodigiosin, exopolysaccharide (EPS), lipase, protease and hemolysin were moderately inhibited by the extracts at varied concentrations. The confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM) and scanning electron microscope (SEM) images revealed that C. sphaerospermum extracts moderately arrested biofilm formation and cell viability. Further, real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) analysis revealed that expressions of genes associated with virulence factors, flhD, fimA, fimC, bsmA, bsmB, pigA, pigC, and shlA, were significantly down-regulated compared with control. In addition, the extracts combined with imipenem inhibited the QS system of S. marcescens NJ01, disrupted its preformed biofilm, released the intra-biofilm bacteria and killed the bacteria gradually. Therefore, the extracts combined with imipenem can partially restore bacterial drug sensitivity. These results suggest that the extracts from SCSGAF0054 effectively interfere with the QS system to treat S. marcescens infection alone or combining with classical antimicrobial drugs.

Hyposterolactone A, a 3α-Hydroxy Steroidal Lactone from the Deep-Sea-Derived Fungus Hypocrea sp. ZEN14.

Chemical investigation of the deep-sea-derived fungus Hypocrea sp. ZEN14 afforded a new 3α-hydroxy steroidal lactone, hyposterolactone A (1) and 25 known secondary metabolites (2-26). The structure of the new compound was established by detailed spectroscopic analysis, electronic circular dichroism (ECD) calculation as well as a J-based configuration analysis. Compound 10 showed potent cytotoxicity against Huh7 and Jurkat cells with IC50 values of 1.4 µM and 6.7 µM, respectively.

Ferroptosis Inhibitory Compounds from the Deep-Sea-Derived Fungus Penicillium sp. MCCC 3A00126.

Two new xanthones (1 and 2) were isolated from the deep-sea-derived fungus Penicillium sp. MCCC 3A00126 along with 34 known compounds (3-36). The structures of the new compounds were established by spectroscopic data. The absolute configuration of 1 was validated by comparison of experimental and calculated ECD spectra. All isolated compounds were evaluated for cytotoxicity and ferroptosis inhibitory activities. Compounds 14 and 15 exerted potent cytotoxicity against CCRF-CEM cells, with IC50 values of 5.5 and 3.5 µM, respectively, whereas 26, 28, 33, and 34 significantly inhibited RSL3-induced ferroptosis, with EC50 values of 11.6, 7.2, 11.8, and 2.2 µM, respectively.

Marine life as a source for breast cancer treatment: A comprehensive review.

Breast cancer, one of the most significant tumors among all cancer cells, still has deficiencies for effective treatment. Moreover, substitute treatments employing natural products as bioactive metabolites has been seriously considered. The source of bioactive metabolites are not only the most numerous but also represent the richest source. A unique source is from the oceans or marine species which demonstrated intriguing chemical and biological diversity which represents an astonishing reserve for discovering novel anticancer drugs. Notably, marine sponges produce the largest amount of diverse bioactive peptides, alkaloids, terpenoids, polyketides along with many secondary metabolites whose potential is mostly therapeutic. In this review, our main focus is on the marine derived secondary metabolites which demonstrated cytotoxic effects towards numerous breast cancer cells and have been isolated from the marine sources such as marine sponges, cyanobacteria, fungi, algae, tunicates, actinomycetes, ascidians, and other sources of marine organisms.

Tetracyclic Steroids Bearing a Bicyclo[4.4.1] Ring System as Potent Antiosteoporosis Agents from the Deep-Sea-Derived Fungus Rhizopus sp. W23.

Chemical investigation of the deep-sea-derived fungus Rhizopus sp. W23 resulted in the identification of six new (1-3, 6, 8, 9) and 12 known (4, 5, 10-19) cyclocitrinol analogues, together with one handling artifact (7), all featuring an unusual 7/7/6/5-tetracyclic scaffold and bicyclo[4.4.1] A/B rings. Norcyclocitrinoic acids A and B (1, 2) represent the second occurrence of 24,25-bisnor cyclocitrinols. Structures were assigned to new steroids on the basis of extensive spectroscopic analysis and X-ray crystallography. Compound 13 significantly enhances osteoblastogenesis and inhibits adipogenesis in mature bone marrow stromal cells at 5 µM, indicating a potential to be an antiosteoporosis lead.

Chemical Constituents of the Deep-Sea-Derived Penicillium citreonigrum MCCC 3A00169 and Their Antiproliferative Effects.

Six new citreoviridins (citreoviridins J-O, 1-6) and twenty-two known compounds (7-28) were isolated from the deep-sea-derived Penicillium citreonigrum MCCC 3A00169. The structures of the new compounds were determined by spectroscopic methods, including the HRESIMS, NMR, ECD calculations, and dimolybdenum tetraacetate-induced CD (ICD) experiments. Citreoviridins J-O (1-6) are diastereomers of 6,7-epoxycitreoviridin with different chiral centers at C-2-C-7. Pyrenocine A (7), terrein (14), and citreoviridin (20) significantly induced apoptosis for HeLa cells with IC50 values of 5.4 µM, 11.3 µM, and 0.7 µM, respectively. To be specific, pyrenocine A could induce S phase arrest, while terrein and citreoviridin could obviously induce G0-G1 phase arrest. Citreoviridin could inhibit mTOR activity in HeLa cells.

Chemical Constituents of the Deep-Sea-Derived Fungus Cladosporium oxysporum 170103 and Their Antibacterial Effects.

The Cladosporium fungi, one of the largest genera of dematiaceous hyphomycetes, could produce various bioactive secondary metabolites. From the AcOEt-soluble extract of Cladosporium oxysporum 170103, three new secopatulolides (1-3) and thirteen known compounds (4-16) were obtained. Their structures were established by detailed analysis of the NMR and HR-ESI-MS data. All sixteen compounds were tested for antibacterial activity against Vibrio parahemolyticus, ergosterol (10) presented moderate effect with the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 32 µM. It can destruct the membrane integrity of Vibrio parahemolyticus to change the cell shape.

Three New Lanostanoids with Anti-HCV Effects from Abies nukiangensis.

Three new lanostane derivatives (1-3) and twelve known triterpenoids (4-15) were isolated from the twigs and leaves of Abies nukiangensis. The structures of the new compounds were elucidated mainly by detailed analysis of their NMR and HR-ESI-MS spectroscopic data. Evaluation of the anti-HCV effects of all isolates showed that 3 exhibited moderate effect with the EC50 value of 11.09 µM.